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By Sharon Kimathi, Energy and ESG Editor, Reuters Digital

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Today’s newsletter focuses on a recent study of global reservoir volumes which have fallen over the last 20 years despite a construction boom. This comes as fears of droughts hitting hydroelectric dams escalate in Honduras as it opts for rationing electricity, while China ramps up its construction of a national water network. 

Global reservoir volumes fell during the last 20 years despite a construction boom that boosted storage capacity, a new study showed, suggesting that new dams will not be enough to solve increasing strain on the world’s water supplies.

Satellite data showed that water sequestered in 7,245 reservoirs across the world fell from 1999 to 2018, despite a 28 cubic kilometer annual increase in capacity, a study published by Nature Communications said. 

Canelon Grande reservoir, amid a historic drought that has left reservoirs dry and Montevideo with only days worth of water, in Canelones, Uruguay May 18, 2023. REUTERS/Mariana Greif

Climate change was a “critical factor” in reducing reservoir efficiency, said lead author Huilin Gao of Texas A&M University, but rising water demand also played a role. “Even if temperatures stop rising, increasing demand and new construction are likely to continue,” she added. 

The decline in storage volumes was concentrated in the south, especially Africa and South America, where water demand increased rapidly and new reservoirs didn’t fill up as quickly as expected.

This comes as Honduran authorities said they would begin rationing electricity due to the impact of a drought that has hit output from hydroelectric dams in the Central American country.

The rationing is set to affect the whole country for a maximum of three hours every three to four days. The move follows a series of blackouts across some cities and towns that have in recent weeks sparked protests and highway blockades.

Elsewhere, China is planning an ambitious new water infrastructure project in the hope that it will mitigate the impact of climate change, but experts warn more river diversions may be costly.

At the end of May, officials released plans to build a national water network of new canals, reservoirs and storage facilities they say will boost irrigation, and cut the risk of floods and droughts.

Minister of Water Resources Li Guoying said the plan would “unblock the major arteries” of the river system by 2035, boosting the state’s ability to even out water supply distribution.

Total investment in fixed water assets exceeded 1.1 trillion yuan ($154 billion) last year, up 44% compared with 2021, analysts said. It rose 15.6% to 407 billion yuan in the first quarter of 2023 and officials say even more funding will be made available.

Although this year’s drought is not expected to be as severe as last year’s, when months of high temperatures parched large parts of the Yangtze basin, state forecasters warn that central and southwestern China could suffer.

China’s per capita water resources are much lower than the world average and distribution is uneven. Some measures to curb demand are in place. Local governments have been pushed to reduce water consumption, improve wastewater recycling and tackle pollution.

Youth climate justice activists Greta Thunberg and Eric Njuguna in Bonn, Germany, June 13, 2023. REUTERS/Wolfgang Rattay

Lindsay Brugger, head of urban resilience at the Urban Land Institute, a global non-profit, shares her thoughts on the imperative to protect cities from climate disaster:

“In 2022 alone, extreme weather events cost the United States $175.2 billion in damage. Taking action to make our cities more resilient to climate change effects – also known as urban resilience – clearly cannot wait.

“The Urban Land Institute just wrapped up its fourth annual Resilience Summit, an event that gathers multidisciplinary experts to explore practical solutions for climate risk mitigation.

“One key takeaway from this year’s Summit in Toronto is that community engagement is critical to reducing climate risk – and local stakeholders are already taking an active role in improving their community’s resilience. 

“One such group includes residents of Eastwick – Philadelphia’s lowest-lying community – who are becoming resilience experts and advocating for measures to reduce high levels of flood risk in their neighborhood.

“Efforts to achieve urban resilience often have many co-benefits that can extend to cities’ housing and equity goals. 

“Take, for example, precedent-setting Indigenous-led plans by the Squamish Nation for 6,000 net-zero residential units covered in greenery to reduce heat and stormwater impacts, coming to Vancouver – an initiative that tackles Canada’s housing crisis, climate hazards, and carbon emissions challenges simultaneously.” 

Vietnam is battling electricity cuts caused by a heatwave that has exposed structural and bureaucratic problems limiting available power to half of installed capacity and crimping efforts to unlock $15.5 billion in global climate funding.

The manufacturing hub hosts large factories run by tech firms Samsung and Foxconn, among others, but has struggled to upgrade its grid, a key step to satisfy demand and attract companies diversifying from China and elsewhere.

Roofers install solar panels on the roof of artists Dan Edelstyn and Hilary Powell’s house in London, Britain, June 6, 2023. REUTERS/Anna Gordon

Today’s Spotlight features artists installing dozens of solar panels on their street in London to combat fuel poverty, and a California-based start-up replacing toxic chemicals on tyres.

Sick of eye-watering energy bills and keen to do what they can to fend off global warming, two artists have shown their north London neighbors that collectively they have the power to tackle both problems.

After raising 113,000 pounds ($141,000), partly through crowd-funding publicized by sleeping on their roof for three cold, winter weeks, artist couple Dan Edelstyn and Hilary Powell have arranged for solar panels to be installed on dozens of houses on their street.

In Waltham Forest, the London borough where the artist couple lives, fuel poverty – meaning households cannot afford to keep their homes at an adequate temperature – is at the third highest level in the capital.

Tyres are seen at a retreating station at the Continental plant in Hanover, Germany April 17, 2023. REUTERS/Fabian Bimmer

Graphene added to tyres could replace the toxic chemical 6PPD, U.S. startup Carbon Rivers says, as pressure mounts on the auto industry to eliminate the widely-used compound that has polluted waterways and been found to be lethal to some fish.

Later this year, California is expected to be the first authority to demand tyre-makers demonstrate they are seeking an alternative to 6PPD.

The antioxidant and antiozonant is found in all tires today because it stabilizes them and reduces cracking, but scientific research published in 2020 found the chemical was to blame for mass deaths of Coho salmon off the U.S. West Coast.

“We see that people turn to Google for information at tough times – including in the case of natural disasters. We began work on floor forecasting in 2018, asking ourselves if there is a way to help save lives and minimize damage by using technology and it took many years of AI research to get to where we’re at today.”

Yossi Matias, vice president of engineering and research at Google

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